Rail-support and securing device.



E. R. INMAN.

BAIL SUPPORT AND SECURING DEVICE.

APPLICATION TILED JAN. 6,1909.

Patented July 6, 1909.

J l n k-FrAIL BASE F'lCil.

EDWARD R. INMAN, OF FRANKLIN, PENNSYLVANIA.

RAIL-SUPPORT AND SECURING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 6, 1909.

Application filed January 6, 1909. Serial No. 470,926.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD R. INMAN, citizen of the United States, residing at Franklin, in the county of Venango and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Su ports and Securing Devices, of which the fol owing is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved railsupport and securing device for use in railway track construction.

The particular object of my invention is to provide a rail support and securing device which. will perform substantially the same ofiice that the tie-plate now in common use is intended to perform, but which will be free from certain objections which ap ly to said plates and from certain defects w rich inhere therein.

The main objection to the tie-plate as now commonly constructed, lies in its liability to become loosened, more or less, from its seat upon the tie, and when this occurs, moisture will creep beneath the plate and cause the tie to rot, and will otherwise hasten the wear and deterioration of the tie. Furthermore, it is a fact generally conceded by those skilled in the art of railway-track construction, that the contact of metal and metal,-as where a metallic seat or plate is placed beneath a rail,-is not an ideal construction, as the effect of the shock of the rail upon the plate, due to a slight loosening of the rail,-is considerably intensified as compared with that resulting between a rail and a more elastic seat, such as is provided by the application of my invention.

My invention consists, essentially, in interposing a suitable receptacle or retainer between the tie and the rail and in filling said receptacle with a suitable plastic material or pitchy substance, preferably coal-tar itch, so that the rail will be supported by said substance, or partially by said substance and partially by said retainer; and incidentally, in so forming said retainer that it will receive, or laterally engage the spikes upon both sides of the rail.

In the drawings, I have shown one way in which my invention may be reduced to prac tice, but said drawings are for the purpose of illustration only, and are not intended to limit my invention to the particular con struction shown therein.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of a tie showmg my improved support in position thereon, the rail being removed and the spikes shown in section. Fig. 2 is a section of my improved support on line II II of Fig. 1, the rail being shown in end elevation.

Referring to the drawings, my improved support and securing device consists of a receptacle 1 for pitch or plastic material, said receptacle being composed of a metallic frame or grid, adapted to be placed upon a tie 2 or any other suitable base; a portion of the openings in said frame are suitably positioned and adapted for the reception of spikes 3. After the rail 4 is in position and the spikes driven in, the openings in the frame or grid 1 are filled with pitch 5, which is molten and poured into said openings in a fluid condition.

Any suitable plastic material may be used, which should be of such a nature as not to become too soft in summer, or too brittle in winter, and which will, under all atmospheric conditions, especially as to temperature, retain a certain elasticity upon the one hand and a due resistance to pressure upon the other. Coal-tar pitch possesses nearly all of the desirable qualities for the purpose specified, and will,with the possible addition of some modifying agent-generally be employed.

In the construction here shown, the plastic filler performs two valuable functions: First, it is sufliciently elastic or resilient to absorb the shock and vibration due to trains passing over it, hence the rail and support are not so liable to become loosened, and the life of the rail, tie and support are thus lengthened. Secondly, the filler is water proof, and having been poured into the grid or retainer in a molten, fluid state, it fills all the interstices of the plate and tie and it is impossible for moisture to find its way beneath it to that portion of the tie upon which it rests, thereby protecting said portion of the tie from moisture and materially aiding in its preservation.

As previously stated, the drawings are not intended to limit my invention to the form of receptacle or retainer therein shown, as many other forms of pitch retainer could be used; the essential feature of my invention being a retainerof any suitable construction which will retain plastic material or pitch beneath the rail and, preferably, aid somewhat in the support of the rail. Incidentally, said pitch retainer should also engage the spikes so as to bind them all together, thus making it impossible to shift the rail laterally without moving all the spikes.

What I claim is 1. In a rail-support and securing device, the combination with a rail and a tie, of a rail seat consisting of the combination of a metallic and a plastic substance interposed between said rail and said tie, and means for securing said rail to said tie.

2. In a rail-support and securing device the combination with a rail and a tie, of a rail-support consisting of a quantity of pitch interposed between said rail and tie, a retaining means for said pitch, and spikes adapted to secure said rail to said tie.

3. In a rail-support and securing device, the combination with a rail and a tie, of a rail-support consisting of a plastic substance and a metallic retainer for said substance interposed between said rail and tie, and spikes for securing said rail to said tie; said retainer being also adapted for the passage therethrough and the lateral engagement of said spikes.

4. In a rail-support and securing device,

the combination with a tie, of a frame located upon said tie, a suitable plastic materialcontained in the opening of said frame and adapted as a seat for said rail, and rail-sesuring spikes; said frame being adapted for the passage therethrough an d the lateral engagement of said spikes.

5. In a rail-support and ecuring device, a rail, a tie, a pitch-ref ainer carried by said tie, pitch in said retainer adapted as a seat for said rail, and means for securing said rail to said tie.

6. In a rail-support and securing device, the combination of a rail, a tie, a pitch-retainer carried by said tie, pitch in said retainer adapted as a seat for said rail, spikes for securing said rail to said tie, and means for laterally engaging said spikes.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

EDWARD R. INMAN.

Witnesses GILsoN SHAFFER, V. E. LOVELAND. 

